Troubles at GDS high school?

[Anonymous]

"Oh, and if you are actually a Cathedral parent, you know that NCS/STA are at least as competitive about Sidwell as anyone at GDS. It is the only private school in the area that my DD and her friends actively denigrate. Seems insecure to me. "

Sidwell parent here. I really don't hear Sidwell kids talking smack about NCS or STA. I think they view them as single sex alternatives to Sidwell.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a parent at another school, and I'd say the disciplinary process at our kids' school and probably at many other independent schools should also be scrutinized. Our son, who is white, was a witness to an incident (not involving any racial or sexual dimension) that resulted in a disciplinary action against another student. An administrator met with our son to "persuade" him to hand over his cell phone to look at texts. Our son was not sure what to do, felt threatened by the administrator, and asked if he could talk this over with us. He wasn't allowed to do so and ended up allowing the administrator to see the texts. He feels terrible about this and the outcome for the other student.

Why not start a new thread talking about this parent and her child's experience at the other school? Seems irrelevant to this thread.

It's relevant because it suggests that at least some of the troubles at GDS high school involve issues that other private schools face as well.

It's only irrelevant if you think that the point of the thread is bashing/defending GDS more generally rather than talking about the specific challenges the school is dealing with right now. And those aren't whether the Obama girls will enroll. Those are what role parents and the board will play in school governance, whether the school remains committed to (and has an effective and intelligent way to implement) its diversity mission, and how to overhaul a disciplinary process that seems really arbitrary. These are serious issues and they have clearly affected students at the HS this year. The open forum had many kids (and some teachers) in tears. And the next day scores of kids just sicked out and stayed home. The parent forum the week after was a disaster -- it left parents questioning whether the Head has the capacity (or even the will) to work through these tough issues. Whether we get problem-solving or just PR in response to recent events remains to be seen.


These are your opinions. Many stayed away precisely because of what they anticipated would ensue.

[Anonymous]

Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

[Anonymous]

Can't say I've ever heard my DD or other NCS girls talking about Sidwell at all, except in the context of "oh yeah, one of my friends goes there" or that sort of thing. Why would they care?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a parent at another school, and I'd say the disciplinary process at our kids' school and probably at many other independent schools should also be scrutinized. Our son, who is white, was a witness to an incident (not involving any racial or sexual dimension) that resulted in a disciplinary action against another student. An administrator met with our son to "persuade" him to hand over his cell phone to look at texts. Our son was not sure what to do, felt threatened by the administrator, and asked if he could talk this over with us. He wasn't allowed to do so and ended up allowing the administrator to see the texts. He feels terrible about this and the outcome for the other student.

Why not start a new thread talking about this parent and her child's experience at the other school? Seems irrelevant to this thread.

It's relevant because it suggests that at least some of the troubles at GDS high school involve issues that other private schools face as well.

It's only irrelevant if you think that the point of the thread is bashing/defending GDS more generally rather than talking about the specific challenges the school is dealing with right now. And those aren't whether the Obama girls will enroll. Those are what role parents and the board will play in school governance, whether the school remains committed to (and has an effective and intelligent way to implement) its diversity mission, and how to overhaul a disciplinary process that seems really arbitrary. These are serious issues and they have clearly affected students at the HS this year. The open forum had many kids (and some teachers) in tears. And the next day scores of kids just sicked out and stayed home. The parent forum the week after was a disaster -- it left parents questioning whether the Head has the capacity (or even the will) to work through these tough issues. Whether we get problem-solving or just PR in response to recent events remains to be seen.


These are your opinions. Many stayed away precisely because of what they anticipated would ensue.

I went *despite* what I anticipated would ensue. I hoped That I was wrong and that, instead of running the clock and repeating what he'd already said in memos, the Head of School would realize that he needed to speak candidly about what had happened, to offer his analysis of why it was happening, to apologize, and to propose a way forward. I was disappointed -- as were many other parents who attended and then stuck around to talk for an hour after the school declared the forum over. GDS had a crisis manager observing, so I don't think it's just my opinion that the school is dealing with some serious problems. YMMV, of course, but, since you didn't even bother to attend the forum, you're not a very credible source re what ensued.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a parent at another school, and I'd say the disciplinary process at our kids' school and probably at many other independent schools should also be scrutinized. Our son, who is white, was a witness to an incident (not involving any racial or sexual dimension) that resulted in a disciplinary action against another student. An administrator met with our son to "persuade" him to hand over his cell phone to look at texts. Our son was not sure what to do, felt threatened by the administrator, and asked if he could talk this over with us. He wasn't allowed to do so and ended up allowing the administrator to see the texts. He feels terrible about this and the outcome for the other student.

Why not start a new thread talking about this parent and her child's experience at the other school? Seems irrelevant to this thread.

It's relevant because it suggests that at least some of the troubles at GDS high school involve issues that other private schools face as well.

It's only irrelevant if you think that the point of the thread is bashing/defending GDS more generally rather than talking about the specific challenges the school is dealing with right now. And those aren't whether the Obama girls will enroll. Those are what role parents and the board will play in school governance, whether the school remains committed to (and has an effective and intelligent way to implement) its diversity mission, and how to overhaul a disciplinary process that seems really arbitrary. These are serious issues and they have clearly affected students at the HS this year. The open forum had many kids (and some teachers) in tears. And the next day scores of kids just sicked out and stayed home. The parent forum the week after was a disaster -- it left parents questioning whether the Head has the capacity (or even the will) to work through these tough issues. Whether we get problem-solving or just PR in response to recent events remains to be seen.


These are your opinions. Many stayed away precisely because of what they anticipated would ensue.

I went *despite* what I anticipated would ensue. I hoped That I was wrong and that, instead of running the clock and repeating what he'd already said in memos, the Head of School would realize that he needed to speak candidly about what had happened, to offer his analysis of why it was happening, to apologize, and to propose a way forward. I was disappointed -- as were many other parents who attended and then stuck around to talk for an hour after the school declared the forum over. GDS had a crisis manager observing, so I don't think it's just my opinion that the school is dealing with some serious problems. YMMV, of course, but, since you didn't even bother to attend the forum, you're not a very credible source re what ensued.

Holding an open bitch session is a great way to ensure that even though 10 people walked in thinking there was a problem, 100 people will walk out thinking there is a problem. Having an open town hall to air all this stuff is insane. No one running a large institution with any level of competence would invite such a session.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

Nothing new on the student being subject to the disciplinary process 24/7. How would it work otherwise? Step off campus and you are free to break the law? It has to be 24/7 otherwise it's toothless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

Nothing new on the student being subject to the disciplinary process 24/7. How would it work otherwise? Step off campus and you are free to break the law? It has to be 24/7 otherwise it's toothless.

Many schools would still keep you as a student, even if there were no charges. It's not about legality, so much as conduct.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: Holding an open bitch session is a great way to ensure that even though 10 people walked in thinking there was a problem, 100 people will walk out thinking there is a problem. Having an open town hall to air all this stuff is insane. No one running a large institution with any level of competence would invite such a session.

.

Well, GDS did it first with the HS students and then with parents. Serious issues emerged in both types of discussions. At which point the question is how do you deal with criticism from within the community? And the answer depends, in part, on what kind of community you envision or aspire to. Large institution vs parent-owned school? Elite school primarily concerned with enhancing its reputation vs. diverse school with a social justice mission? Service providers or educators? Managers or partners?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

Nothing new on the student being subject to the disciplinary process 24/7. How would it work otherwise? Step off campus and you are free to break the law? It has to be 24/7 otherwise it's toothless.

Many schools would still keep you as a student, even if there were no charges. It's not about legality, so much as conduct.

In public school you would probably not be punished for making racist comments or smoking pot (unless the police are involved) outside of the school building.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

Nothing new on the student being subject to the disciplinary process 24/7. How would it work otherwise? Step off campus and you are free to break the law? It has to be 24/7 otherwise it's toothless.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

Nothing new on the student being subject to the disciplinary process 24/7. How would it work otherwise? Step off campus and you are free to break the law? It has to be 24/7 otherwise it's toothless.

Many schools would still keep you as a student, even if there were no charges. It's not about legality, so much as conduct.

In public school you would probably not be punished for making racist comments or smoking pot (unless the police are involved) outside of the school building.

Yeah, and we're not talking about public schools. Public schools wont expel you for pot possession either, or of they do expel you, they actually just send you to another public school. Privates can have their own rules, and they do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Holding an open bitch session is a great way to ensure that even though 10 people walked in thinking there was a problem, 100 people will walk out thinking there is a problem. Having an open town hall to air all this stuff is insane. No one running a large institution with any level of competence would invite such a session.

.

Well, GDS did it first with the HS students and then with parents. Serious issues emerged in both types of discussions. At which point the question is how do you deal with criticism from within the community? And the answer depends, in part, on what kind of community you envision or aspire to. Large institution vs parent-owned school? Elite school primarily concerned with enhancing its reputation vs. diverse school with a social justice mission? Service providers or educators? Managers or partners?

Hey man, you get what you deserve. I want my kid educated and I want the administrators to throw out the miscreants who smoke pot or assault their classmates. If you want to sit around BS'ing about a bunch of shit that you will never, ever change, go right ahead. That sucking sound you are hearing is the flow of students to other, more squared away schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Black people can be too naive. Never believe that racism cannot happen even at GDS. It is sad that Black kids were crying because they felt betrayed. Policy has to be the focus...not race exclusively. The 24/7 policy puts GDS in the houses of white and black families when the school sees fit.

The 24/7 policy was true at my prep school back in the 80s. This is not new, people. Back then, if you were caught using drugs off campus, you were expelled.

Nothing new on the student being subject to the disciplinary process 24/7. How would it work otherwise? Step off campus and you are free to break the law? It has to be 24/7 otherwise it's toothless.

Many schools would still keep you as a student, even if there were no charges. It's not about legality, so much as conduct.

In public school you would probably not be punished for making racist comments or smoking pot (unless the police are involved) outside of the school building.

Thank God privates tend to ensure higher standards.